UK dividends jump to £37bn in Q2 as the pound stumbles

Second-largest payout on record

Large special dividends and a strong dollar in the second quarter of the year drove UK dividends to rise 38.6% year-on-year on a headline basis to £37bn, according to Link Group's latest UK Dividend Monitor.

Underlying dividends, which exclude specials such as large one-off payments, jumped by 27% to £32bn, boosted by the weak pound. Both headline and underlying figures represent the second-largest quarterly total behind the all-time record, which was reached in Q2 2019. Following an upgrade of its 2022 forecast, Link Group now expects headline dividend growth of 2.4% to £96.3bn. Excluding special dividends, the firm predicts a year-on-year increase of 12.5% to £86.8bn.   A disproportionate three quarters of the year-on-year increase came from the UK's three biggest dividend-paying sector...